Sabato: John Murphy was the broadcaster to whom Bills fans could relate

Four-year-olds typically don’t think much about the future.

I first met John Murphy in 1994. I was the celebrity child for the annual Variety Club Telethon and he was a sports anchor for WKBW, the channel that aired the telethon at the time.

All I knew then was that he was a sports guy and I was obsessed with sports, to the point my older brothers would use me as a gimmick with their friends, attempting to stump me with trivia questions. John was always kind and indulged me, although I don’t think I ever put one over on him.

That continued once or twice per year when I would see him at Variety Club events until he left WKBW in 2007. Never did I think that we would maintain a relationship for 30 years.

John helped me with projects during college and hired me as a summer intern at WIVB. When I became a full-time journalist for the first time, based in Lockport, at the now-defunct Community Papers in Western New York, he granted me a profile on him.

Even when I moved away to work for newspapers in Wisconsin and South Dakota, I stayed in touch and even used his contacts on occasion. When I moved back to work for the Gazette 2 ½ years ago, he sent me a message and I was able to profile him again.

Thursday’s announcement that John was stepping aside, officially, as the play-by-play announcer for the Buffalo Bills was one that even those — myself included — who held out hope wouldn’t come, knew was inevitable 16 months after suffering a stroke. Even though it was a difficult decision for him, it’s not a day to be sad, but one to remember the highlights of a career of a man whose craft was defined by his passion for Buffalo sports, particularly the Bills.

“I love the kickoff of the game to the end of the game,” Murphy said by phone Thursday. “I love that part of it and it’s tough to give that up, but my voice is taking a little too long to come back, so I won’t be ready in September and I’ve got to let the Bills know that.”

After his stroke on Jan. 1, 2023, Murphy missed the remainder of the season, and it was announced just prior to last year that he wouldn’t call games in 2023. Still, Murphy attended all but one home game with his son, Mark, a Niagara Falls lawyer who doubles as a spotter for the WGR550 broadcasts.

Admittedly, being in Highmark Stadium, standing in the radio booth and not being able to put on his familiar headset was difficult. Murphy had to be dragged out of the house for some games because he didn’t want to go, but once he was in the stadium, he felt good.

Murphy has worked feverishly for more than a year to restore his voice, which still has a slight slur. He does speech therapy twice per week, a cognitive brain program online, lost 70 pounds and even released a book last year — ‘If These Walls Could Talk: Buffalo Bills: Stories from the Buffalo Bills Sideline, Locker Room, and Press Box’ — but simply wasn’t his recovery simply progressing fast enough for a man who made a living with his voice for more than 35 years.

“The recovery is slower than I thought and that’s the frustrating part,” Murphy said. “I think I’ll eventually get to talk OK, but it won’t be in time for the season. … I’ve made my living talking about things. I feel great, I lost a ton of weight, I’m probably the healthiest I’ve ever been, I just can’t talk.”

Prior to the stroke, Murphy downsized his workload to spend more time with his grandchildren, leaving his ‘One Bills Live’ simulcast in favor of a once-per-week podcast with Sullivan’s Brewing Company. Retirement doesn’t mean Murphy’s voice will never again be heard on Bills broadcast, though.

Murphy has spoken to the Bills and hopes to recover enough to provide some short analysis on pregame broadcasts. He remains disappointed a chance to call a Bills Super Bowl never came — the four-year 1990s run came when broadcast rights shifted away from WBEN — but doesn’t call it a regret.

It’s hard to imagine anyone who regretted tuning into a game broadcast by Murphy, forcing Bills fans to figure out how to turn the television down and the radio up. He didn’t have the over-the-top catchphrases like his predecessor Van Miller, but he provided a smooth voice that brought fans through the radio and into the stadium, and when there was an exciting play, he delivered a genuine call because he grew up a genuine fan.

“I used to worry about not having a signature catchphrase, but after a while, I was just so excited to be there and so excited to be doing the game,” Murphy said. “It meant a lot to me to be doing games without catchphrases or thinking of opportunities to import them into the dialogue. It was genuine excitement and enthusiasm.”